Cricket-The Gentleman's game

At the outset,let us celebrate the outstanding triple century of Virender Sehwag.I must say,it was a treat to watch such excellent batting in such hot &humid conditions.Now,that the test match has ended & expectedly in a draw i have been wondering about the future of Test Cricket post IPL & 20-20.Let me be very honest in saying that i thoroughly enjoyed the six sixes in an over by Yuvraj Singh & India's triumph in the inaugural ICC 20-20 World Cup.
But,as noted historian & avid cricket aficionado Ramchandra Guha recently wrote,Test cricket is akin to premium scotch,ODI's to Indian made foreign liquor & 20-20 to country made hooch.My opinions aren't much different for it was Test cricket that gave us our cricketing greats.I have observed, players who succeeded at the Test cricket level also do well in the other forms of the game;but the vice-versa isn't true.Notable examples being Ajay Jadeja & Michael Bevan.I think our generation was lucky enough to see a Wasim Akram-Waqar Younis bowling in tandem or for that matter Anil kumble & Habhajan singh.Still,I envy the older generation for they could see the Fast bowling greats of West Indies all bowling in tandem or for that matter the famed spin quartet of India.If you had a Vivian Richards who could tear your bowling apart,you also had a Peter Taylor who could get him out with his off spinners.Even i remember some exceptional duels between bat & ball as late as the mid nineties.I consider myself lucky to have seen Sachin tendulkar,Brian lara,Muthiah murlitharan,Shane warne all in their prime.
Initially,when ODI's came up big time,they were also perceived to be a threat.Has it really affected the game?i would say yes although like a slow poison its effects are being visible of lately.There have been some positives like financial security of players & plenty of money for development of cricket in other parts of the World.But,post retirement of some of the cricketing greats & with some on the verge of one aren't we finding that we are awfully short of talent in World Cricket.Have we seen someone as good as a Tendulkar or Akram?Spin bowling is a dying art & thanks to ODIs' & now 20-20's spinners are seen as people who could rush through their overs quickly to keep a tab on over rate.Now who cares that spin bowling is an art & can be perfected only in an arena like that of test cricket.Even in Fast bowling,all we see is half baked products & thanks to the hectic schedule they are injured more often than not.Even when they are fit,all they get is flat pitches where they only end up spoiling their career averages.Now,in such a scenario its only usual to expect kids to dream of becoming a batsman.
In the early days of ODI's there was a fine balance between ODI's & Test cricket.With the passage of time & growing popularity ODI's took center stage.Still,the effect on the game was minimal.It was blatant commercialization of the game & concentration of the power in the hands of businessmen & politicians -especially in south Asia- that the game began to lose its sheen.
Today,the entire cricket lovers fraternity is debating the pros & cons of 20-20 cricket & leagues such as IPL.Its a nice proposition,but then too much of everything is bad.So,lets not kill our golden goose.Cricket was always a classic game.We can do a service to the generations to come by not tampering with its class & quality.